Alex Snowdon and Steve Roberts were responding to recent claims by Policy & Finance Committee chairwoman Jeannie Cameron that she had noticed a change in public mood towards Guernsey.
Alderney’s top politician said she had seen signs in people’s windows calling for ‘Aexit’ – Alderney exiting Guernsey.
Mr Snowdon said he had specifically looked for the signs, and could not find any.
‘I spend most days on Victoria Street and the High Street in Alderney. Having looked at all the windows in town, I failed to see any of the “Aexit” signs currently being claimed,’ he said.
‘There are a few “No to GST” and “No to data centre” signs around, but none that I could find relating to the claimed “Aexit”.’
Mr Roberts separately told the Guernsey Press that he had not seen any either.
‘I haven’t seen one, not in one window,’ he said.
He added that he was ‘furious’ at the suggestion that people in Alderney wanted to end the island’s union with Guernsey.
‘That is absolutely an untruth,’ he said.
‘We couldn’t survive without Guernsey.’
However, both men acknowledged genuine frustrations about Alderney’s relationship with Guernsey.
Mr Snowdon highlighted the airport project, transport links and medevac arrangements as issues that needed to be addressed.
He said the runway had consistently had political support in the States of Guernsey, but that the process for delivering major capital projects was a problem.
‘This must be addressed to give confidence and certainty to the community involved and to ensure that important projects can be delivered,’ he said.
Mr Roberts also pointed to problems with the airline and runway, but said they were no reason for the islands to fall out.
‘We’ve got problems with our airline, which has been sadly neglected, and our runway,’ he said.
‘But that’s not a point for us to all fall out and start saying, “Oh, we’re leaving Guernsey”. That’s very irresponsible to say, and I’m quite annoyed about it. For someone to do so much damage after all the hard work we’ve both done, both islands.’
Mr Snowdon said Alderney had been through difficult periods in its relationship with Guernsey, and there had been times when islanders felt their voice was not heard strongly enough.
He said those concerns should not be dismissed, and that Alderney should expect greater influence, accountability and a stronger say over its future.
‘Personally, I don’t believe Alderney can actually cut itself fully away from Guernsey when healthcare and education are so important and essential for our island community of 2,000 people,’ he said.
‘We pay our taxes and social security contributions to Guernsey in return for transferred services, and that relationship provides essential services to people living in Alderney.
‘I also don’t believe that, if we did break away, Jersey would simply rock up and take over any new relationships.’
Mr Roberts also stressed how much Alderney relies on the services it receives through Guernsey.
‘It was my ancestors that started this communal farm on Alderney after the war,’ he said.
‘And Guernsey came to our aid and set up a fiscal union which saved our bacon.
‘We could not exist here without a hospital, people would just die. We need the PEH, we need our airport, we need our school. And we’re all reliant on Guernsey for all of this.’
Mr Snowdon pointed to cooperation over the Island Medical Centre and during the Covid pandemic as examples of the two islands working together when it mattered.
He said the focus should now be on improving the relationship and working together on economic development, not separation.
‘The answer is not to walk away from Guernsey, but to make the relationship between Alderney and Guernsey work better for both islands,’ he said.
‘A healthy relationship cannot be one-sided; it requires communication, trust and a willingness on both sides to resolve problems rather than allow frustrations to build.’
He warned that ‘Aexit’ could put up further barriers between the islands.
‘Aexit would risk causing far more damage than good for Alderney,’ he said.
‘We should be fixing what isn’t working, not walking away from what does.’